Method of installing mud rail



July 29, 1969 L.. L.. s. NELSON 3,457,628

METHOD OF INSTALLING MUD RAIL INVENTOR. ur/05 L 5.' A/HUN /l 7 I'ONEKS July 29, 1969 L.. L.. s. NELSON 3,457,628

METHOD OF INSTALLING MUD RAIL Original Filed Oct. 2,6, 1964 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 BMM-MW "IM A r rok/VE X5 July 29 1969 n.. L.. s. NELsoN 3,457,628

METHOD OF INSTALLING MUD RAIL Original `Filed Oct. 26, 1964 5 Sheets-Sheet S l N VEN TOR. ur/LUS l. 5. NELSON HY; j g/ghm A TI'OE/VEKS United States Patent() 3,457,628 METHOD F INSTALLING MUD RAIL Lutilius L. S. Nelson, 2781 11th Ave. SW., Seattle, Wash. 98134 Griginal application Oct. 26, 1964, Ser. No. 406,518, now

Patent No. 3,337,131, dated Aug. 22, 1967. Divided and this application Jan. 25, 1967, Ser. No. 611,713 Int. Cl. B21d 39/00; B23p .7l/02 U.S. Cl. 29-446 3 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE This application is a divisional application of my copending application Ser. No. 406,518, tiled on Oct. 26, 1964, now Patent No.3,337,131, titled, Mud Rail, which is in turn a continuation-in-part of my previous application Ser. No. 279,7 33, filed May 13, 1963, titled, Flangeway Guard, and now abandoned. The present application claims the method disclosed in said co-pending application.

At railroad crossings or like areas Where wheeled vehicles such as automobiles cross railway rails, it is common practice to install mud guards, which are often steel rails of the same type as the running rails, but of smaller size, being frequently rails that have served their usefulness as running rails, and have been taken up. These rails when so installed are termed mud rails. When properly installed, at the inner side of a running rail, with the head of the mud rail level with the head of the running rail, and the two heads correctly spaced laterally, a space or slot is detined within which the ilange of a wheel traversing the running rail can run. Difiering from guardrails that engage and retain the flange of a wheel, opposite the point where two rails cross, against lateral shifting that might incorrectly divert the crossing wheel along the wrong track, mud rails are so spaced from the cooperating running rail that the wheel of a car traversing the running rail will never engage the mud rail. The mud rails function is to hold back paving material intermediate running rails at a crossing, just as the running rails hold back such material outside thereof, and so to provide a slot for wheel flanges and a smooth and non-deteriorating crossing, level with the heads of all rails, for wheeled road vehicles such as trucks. Since the mud rail is not subjected to severe lateral stresses, such as those imposed upon a guardrail by the wheels of cars traversing the running rails, the construction and installation of a mud rail support is materially dilferent from those of supports tor a guardrail, and the mud rail installation will not su'ice as a guardrail installation. It should be relatively inexpensive, both in material cost and in cost of installation.

Such crossings sometime occur at locations along a curved running rail. The mud rails are supplied in straight lengths, and must be distorted in or prior to installation so as to conform in curvature to the running rail. Because the mud rails are initially straight, and because of the simple structure preferred for the mud rail support, it has been found impossible to install a mud rail thus distorted to the correct curvature, whether the mud rail is precurved, which is impracticable, or is distorted during the process of installation, if such mud rail support is made 3,457,628 Patented July 29, 1969 rice entirely according to the construction proposed in my original application. The construction of the apparatus disclosed is highly effective in the installation of a mud rail along a curved running rail in accordance with the present method, and also it simplies such an installation along straight running rails, where because of slight departures of rails, plates, etc., from standard sizes, or of slight variations in location of such parts from their intended locations, as they are installed, the mud rail cannot readily be engaged, or in some instances cannot be engaged at all, with certain locating and hold-down means of the type disclosed in my earlier application.

It is an object of this invention to provide a method of installation of a mud rail, and especially for the installation of mud rails when the modified plate of my copending and above-identied application is employed, whereby the installation is accomplished quickly, securely, and at minimum expense.

These and other objects will appear more fully hereinafter.

The invention resides in the method of installing a mud rail in proper relationship to the running rail, all as will be made clear in this specification, and will be defined in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings I have shown a typical installation and support.

FIGURE 1 is a side elevation of the support, the rails being shown in section, illustrating the manner of engaging the outer flange of the mud rail with its support, during installation, and FIGURE 2 is a similar view, with the installation at one support completed.

FIGURE 3 is a perspective view of a convexly curved running rail and a cooperating mud rail showing the mud rail secured in place at a near support only, and in process of being anchored at the next support, this view illustrating how the next support allows proper engagement of the mud rail by its minimum torsional distortion, and FIGURE 4 is a similar view, showing the mud rail fully installed upon the second support; this step-by-step engagement With successive supports would continue throughout the length of the mud rail, when the mud rail is installed at the convex side of a curved running rail.

FIGURE 5 is a perspective view corresponding to FIG- URE 3, illustrating the partially completed installation of a mud rail according to this invention alongside a concavely curved running rail.

Where reference is made herein to inner or outer flanges or sides of any rail, it is to be understood that the inner ange is the flange nearer the opposite running rail, and the outer flange is the flange opposite such inner ange. The mud rails are installed at the inner sides of the running rails with which they respectively cooperate. The mud rails are installed with their heads uppermost, and rest upon their flanges. The head of a mud rail should be at the same level as the head of the cooperating running rail, with the two heads spaced apart by a distance sufficiently in excess of the thickness of the flange of a wheel traversing the running rail that that llange will not contact the mud rail. So installed the heads are close enough that an automobile wheel rolling upon pavement outside the running rail and inside the mud rail will be subjected to no noticeable bump as it crosses the rails, and the rails protect the abutting pavement against deterioration7 as can be seen by reference to FIGURE 2.

The running rail 1 is installed rst, for it is its presence that calls for the installation of the mud lrail 2 at the area of a crossing, where pavement P is 'built up to the height of the heads ofthe rails. Running rails are supported from ties T by tie plates of various sorts that rest directly upon the ties and upon which plate rest the iianges 10a and 10b. A at plate 3 is shown, yet a canted plate or other style of plate could be used equally well. The plate used should be of a length to extend from outside the outer flange a of running trail 1 well past the inner flange 10b of rail 1. It is normally formed with holes for passage of the shanks of spikes S by which the rail 1 and the plate 3 are fixed to the supporting tie T.

Since the mud rail 2 with which this invention is concerned is a headed and flanged rail of the same shape as the running rail 1, but smaller, it is necessary to support it at such elevation above the plate 3 that its head 21 is level with the head 11 of the running rail. For this purpose an integral, usually welded-on, lug 32 stands up from the plate 3 suthciently high that when the flanges 20 of mud rail 2 rest upon the at upper seating surface 30 of the lug, the head 21 will be at the same level as the head 11. The height of the lug 32 will vary in accordance with the size of the mud rail to be empl-oyed. The lug is located at the inner side of the ange 10b of the running rail, and may be sulliciently narrow that it will not obstruct driving spikes through the plate to engage the inner flange 10b of the running rail. Its breadth, transversely of the rails, is just sufllcient to support the flanges of the mud rail.

The lug 32 may extend as a hook 31 outwardly over the inner flange 10b of the running rail. This hook 31 may be relied on to hold down flange 10b to the plate, instead of spikes S at this particular point, but preferably spikes are used here as well as elsewhere. This extension outwardly of lug 32 shifts the seat 30 slightly nearer head 11 of the `running rail.

At its outer end the lug is formed with a ho-ok 33 facing laterally inwardly to engage and hold down the outer flange 20 of the mud rail 2 upon its seat 30. At its inner end the lug is undercut, to dellne a surface 34 that slopes inwardly and upwardly to intersect the plane of the seat 30 substantially at the inner edge thereof, corresponding to the breadth of flanges 20. A malleable tab 4 is secured flat against the surface 34, as by welding, and before installation of the mud rail 2 the tab inclines upwardly and inwardly to a short distance above the level of seat 30, as is best seen in FIGURE l. The precise slope is not important, being shown as 45; the important thing is that the slope, in relation to the free length of the tab, be such that in the process of installation the tab shall not prevent the anges of mud rail 2 from seating properly at 30, nor from engaging within hook 33, as would be the case were the tab disposed vertically. This will appear more clearly hereinafter.

As has been stated, mud rails are supplied in straight lengths, as is the case in FIGURE 3, for it would be impractical to prebend them on the job, or even in advance of delivery to a job site, to a radius of curvature to parallel the curvature of the running rail. When such mud rails must be installed alongside the convex side of a curved running rail, one end of the mud rail is anchored close to the running rail, as is the nearer end in FIGURE 3, and the mud rail, at some distance from its anchored end, is engaged by a crowbar or like tool B (FIGURE 3) and forced laterally and slightly upwardly over the end of tab 4, and then usually torsionally so that its outer flange engages beneath the hook 33, and its flanges 20 seat at 30. This anchors the mud rail, laterally bent between the two points of securement, but seated ilatly at the two seats 30, at these two points. This step-by-step bending and anchoring proceeds the length of the mud rail. Since the process of anchoring involves engaging the outer flange of the mud rail beneath the hook 33 and seating its flanges 20 ilatly upon the seat 3l), it is clear that unless the end of the seat opposite the hook 33 is devoid of anything that projects materially above the level of the seat, or close to the inner end thereof, the mud rail, in addition to being stressed laterally for curvature, must also be greatly stressed torsionally to eect such engagement and seating,

and some free space must be left between tab 4 and hook 33. The tab 4 does project above the level of seat 30, and in an earlier form wherein the tab projected vertically upward immediately at the inner end of the Seat to a distance to afford sufficient length to bend it over the inner flange 20 of mud rail 2, this vertical tab precluded engagement and seating of the rail 2, for the rail -could not be distorted suficiently torsionally while at the same time being distorted laterally and upwardly, in the distance between successive anchorages, usually approximately fortytwo inches.

According to the invention as shown herein, the upwardly and inwardly angled tab, as in FIGURE l, projects so slightly above the seat 30, and at such a distance from the inner end thereof, that only minimum upward and torsional distortion is required, and the outer llange of rail 2 can -be elevated above tab 4 to slip onto seats 30, and engaged beneath hook 33, as shown by the arrow A in FIGURE l, and its flanges 20 will seat fully upon seat 30, just outside the base of tab 4. Now the malleable tab is bent outwardly and over the inner flange of rail 2, using a sledge. The mud rail is thereby ilrrnly anchored, in curved condition paralleling the running rail, at a second point of anchorage. This proceeds past successive points of anchorage until the end of the mud rail is reached, The curvature of the mud rail now parallels the curved running rail, throughout the length of the mud lrail.

If the mud rail must be anchored inside a convexly curved running rail, the method illustrated in FIGURE 5 is used, which is a variation of the method already described. The straight mud rail is first loosely anchored, as at M and N, to supports of the type described at its opposite ends. It then extends chordally relative to the curved running rail, as indicated in FIGURE 5 by the dot-dash lines. Now a jack J is used, somewhere between its ends, and reacting from the opposite running rail or other fixed point, to bow the mud =rail generally to the curvature of the cooperating running rail, and a crowbar B distorts it sufllciently upwardly to pass over the tab 4 of a support 32, and torsionally to engage its outer flange beneath hook 23, and it seats upon the seat 3G of the support. The tab is bent over, and can be loosely engaged at first. This step-by-step engagement proceeds until all supports engage and hold the mud rail curved. If sorne tabs are not as yet fully engaged with ilanges 20 they are pounded into full engagement, and the installation is cornplete. In FIGURE 5 the upper end of the mud rail is shown fully bent, but the bending and anchoring yof the lower (nearer) end is proceeding.

After the mud rail is thus installed, the pavement P is laid, using the rails 1 and 2 to limit the spread of the paving material, which can rise to the level of the heads 11 and 21. A `slot remains between these heads, in which the ilange of a railway car wheel can run freely, this slot being of such width that the mud rail 2 is never contacted by the wheel flanges, yet not so wide as to create an appreciable bump for automobile wheels.

A mud rail installation according to the present invention is also useful if the track is straight, and not curved. All parts may be correctly located and aligned, yet it is seldom possible to locate plates 3 so accurately that the precise location of hooks 33 and tabs 4 can be relied upon, with respect to the running rail. Moreover, while rails, plates, lugs, etc., are generally assumed to be of unvarying dimensions, and locations, quite often they vary by enough to cause trouble in the installation. Such variations have caused diiliculty in engaging and anchoring mud rails correctly, especially in enabling engagement of the outer ange thereof beneath the hook 33, because of interference of flanges 20 with vertically upright tabs such as 4, in the earlier form of the invention. The form shown, with the tab 4 sloped as described, avoids such difculties, and allows for departures from size and location of parts. Even if parts are accurately located, a vertical tab would allow no room to slip a flange 20 laterally beneath a hook 33, whereas the sloped tab affords ample room.

I claim as my invention:

1. A method of installin-g a flanged and headed mud rail with its head substantially level with the head of an installed running rail, and spaced laterally from the same by a sufficient distance that the ange of a wheel traversing the running rail cannot engage the mud rail, which method comprises engaging the outer flange at one end of the mud rail by a laterally and inwardly opening hook that is located in a predetermined relation to the runnin-g rail, and bending a bendable tab over the inner flange of the same end of the mud rail to maintain such mud rail, at this end, in `correct relationship to the running rail, then at an interval in the length of the mud rail engaging the same with a second hook similarly located and arranged, distorting the mud rail at least torsionally in such interval as may be necessary to effect such engagement, and holdin-g it in such engagement by bending a second bendable tab, opposite the second hook, over the inner flange of the mud rail, and so on in steps at intervals between the opposite ends of the mud rail.

2. A method of installing a flanged and headed mud rail with its head substantially level with the head of and alongside an installed and convexly curved running rail, and spaced laterally by a given distance from the same, which method comprises engaging the outer flange of the mud rail, at its one end, beneath a laterally and inwardly opening hook that is located in a predetermined relation to the running rail, bending a bendable tab that is located inwardly of said hook by width of the flanges ofthe mud rail, over the inner liange of the mud rail, to maintain such mud rail, at this end, in correct relationship to the running rail, then at a short interval in the length of the mud rail engaging the same with a second hook `similarly located and arranged, in so doing distorting the mud rail, in the interval between hooks, upwardly to pass above a second tab associated with the second hook, torsionally as necessary to lower its outer ange to the level of the second hook, and laterally to cause that outer flange to engage beneath the second hook, and holding it in such engaged position by bending the second tab over the inner flange of the mud rail, and so on in steps at like intervals along the mud rail.

3. A method of installing a anged and headed mud rail with its head substantially level with the head of and alongside an installed and concavely curved running rail, and spaced laterally by a given distance from the same, which method comprises enga-ging the outer flange of the mud rail, at both its ends, beneath a laterally and inwardly opening hook that is located in a predetermined relation to the running rail, bending a bendable tab that is located inwardly of each such hook by the width of the flanges of the mud rail, over the inner flange of the mud rail, to maintain the mud rail, at its ends, in correct relationship to the running rail, then distorting the mud rail, intermediate its ends, upwardly to pass over the tab associated with a like third hook located intermediate the ends of the mud rail, laterally to bend the mud rail closely to the curvature of the running rail, and torsionally as necessary to lower its outer iiange to the level of such third hook, holding the ilange of the mud rail in such position relative to the third hook by bending the corresponding bendable tab, and so on at intervals intermediate two points of engagement.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 909,519 1/ 1909 Batchelder 23S-20 1,240,408 9/ 1917 Betts 23 8-20 1,385,483 7/ 1921 Carter 29-513 X 2,024,110 12/1935 ONeill 23 8-20 2,044,060 `6/ 193 6 Clarkson 23 8--20 3,090,109 5/ 1963 White et al 29-446 X CHARLIE T. MOON, Primary Examiner 

